RMT Ballot Scotrail Members For Strike Action

[LoogaBarooga]

Scotrail laying down the gauntlet,

RMT push for industrial action is wrong - ScotRail

The RMT’s push for industrial action at a time of national crisis is wrong, ScotRail said today. While ScotRail is providing job security for more than 5,200 permanent staff, RMT bosses are agitating for possible strike action over pay. ScotRail’s passenger numbers remain 80 per cent down...

www.scotrail.co.uk

Monday, 16 November 2020
The RMT’s push for industrial action at a time of national crisis is wrong, ScotRail said today.
While ScotRail is providing job security for more than 5,200 permanent staff, RMT bosses are agitating for possible strike action over pay.
ScotRail’s passenger numbers remain 80 per cent down year-on-year because of lockdown restrictions. At the height of the initial lockdown earlier this year, passenger numbers and revenue dropped by 95 per cent.
Despite this, the RMT is balloting its members for possible strike action because there has been no pay increase for 2020/21.
RMT members include ScotRail’s train cleaning team and conductors. The average base salary for ScotRail train cleaners is more than £27,000, with some earning more than £36,000. The average conductor base salary is more than £32,000.
All ScotRail staff also benefit from generous terms and conditions, including access to defined benefit pension scheme and healthcare benefits.
The terms of the emergency measures agreement (EMA) with the Scottish Government, whereby the government has provided additional funding to make up the revenue shortfall to ensure staff can be paid and services can operate, mean ScotRail has not placed a single member of its 5,200 staff on furlough, cut any permanent roles, or made any changes to base staff salaries.
This is in stark contrast to many other transport operators across the country, which are cutting thousands of jobs.
Under the terms of the EMA, ScotRail can only begin pay talks with the trade unions when authorised to do so by Transport Scotland. Given the uncertainty around the public finances, no authorisation has been provided.
Following a recent survey of its ScotRail members, the trade union TSSA concluded ‘it is clear that a significant majority are not currently in favour of participating in strike action with the consensus on this particular point weighted toward job security over a pay increase.’
Alex White, ScotRail Chief Operating Officer, said:
“The RMT’s push for industrial action at a time of national crisis is wrong.
“ScotRail is proud to provide well-paid and highly skilled jobs for more than 5,200 people. While other transport operators across the country have cut thousands of jobs, not a single member of ScotRail’s permanent staff has lost their job, been placed on furlough, or had any cuts to base salaries. This is thanks to the emergency funding we have secured from the Scottish Government.
“Passengers and taxpayers will not have much sympathy for any RMT-led strike action which stops doctors, nurses, care workers, and the other heroes of the pandemic from getting to their work.”

​

 

[Wilts Wanderer]

Threatening strike action at the current time is frankly immoral.

 

[Efini92]

Are train cleaners really on £27k?

 

[Bletchleyite]

Are train cleaners really on £27k?

That is quite shocking - usually cleaners get minimum wage. I can see them considering outsourcing...

I retain my view that people shouldn't expect any pay rise this year. Many companies are imposing cuts.

 

[StephenHunter]

Do the RMT do anything else apart from striking?

 

[theironroad]

I suppose that 'other' transport operators refers to the aviation industry rather than other train or bus companies??

I see they are keen to point out that no permanent staff have lost jobs, I wonder if like others tocs they use a lot of agency staff on stations, gatelines and as cleaners. How many of these staff have been offered zero hours?

I must admit that as rail worker (not ScotRail) who was has worked as normal (& non contractual overtime) since this whole covid thing started, I find the last sentence in that press release/statement absolutely contemptible of all the rail staff, especially in this case of their own employees , who have kept the railways running the last eight months. Disgusting.

As to the ballot, I doubt it will pass and tbh in the current situation I'd have voted against though that final statement may have changed my mind.

 

[LoogaBarooga]

It wasn't too long ago Alex White was calling Scotrail staff heros.

 

[Efini92]

That is quite shocking - usually cleaners get minimum wage. I can see them considering outsourcing...

I retain my view that people shouldn't expect any pay rise this year. Many companies are imposing cuts.

I suspect they used the salary of someone that did a lot of overtime. First bus in Aberdeen did something similar a few years ago in a recruitment drive.

I’m quite surprised they are fighting for a payrise. A reduction in the working week would allow for more jobs.

 

[StephenHunter]

Does the RMT even represent agency workers?

 

[LowLevel]

Does the RMT even represent agency workers?

Yes. It is an area they're keen to expand and they've had quite a lot of success in doing so.

 

[theironroad]

Does the RMT even represent agency workers?

If they join the RMT they will represent them individually.

Whether collective bargaining is in place is another matter and it often isn't .

 

[SiggysigAah]

That is quite shocking - usually cleaners get minimum wage. I can see them considering outsourcing...

I retain my view that people shouldn't expect any pay rise this year. Many companies are imposing cuts.

There was an advert locally for agency train cleaners in the past few months. Wage was advertised as £13:50 - £14 per hour.

 

[island]

I suspect they used the salary of someone that did a lot of overtime. First bus in Aberdeen did something similar a few years ago in a recruitment drive.

I’m quite surprised they are fighting for a payrise. A reduction in the working week would allow for more jobs.

The statement says £27,000 is the average base salary and some earn upwards of £36,000.

 

[Qwerty133]

£27,000 for cleaners is frankly an abuse of taxpayer money and the quicker it is outsourced and wage costs brought down to a level more consistent with the rate of pay for cleaners more generally the better. There should be a specific exemption to employment law with regards to forced pay cuts in cases like this where it can be demonstrated that a salary is grossly disproportionate compared to similar jobs in the same area.

 

[LoogaBarooga]

The salaries quoted are correct. I think maybe cleaning team leaders are on 36k and I'm pretty sure most of the cleaning jobs are permanent night shift.

 

[Iskra]

The next Scotrail cleaner vacancy is going to be popular.

 

[InOban]

I believe that the staff who normally do other tasks such as catering have been reallocated to additional cleaning.
And Scotrail have pointed out their hands are entirely tied by Transport Scotland who after all are paying the bills.

 

[GRALISTAIR]

Threatening strike action at the current time is frankly immoral.

Amen to that

 

[Efini92]

The statement says £27,000 is the average base salary and some earn upwards of £36,000.

That’s a lot higher than the cleaners at Northern. I think they are around the £18K mark.

 

[LowLevel]

In many cases they aren't just "cleaners" as in a mop, bucket and bin bag. Depot cleaners can be quite specialised positions. Everything from cleaning down trains after incidents to removing graffiti without damaging the train to carrying out other heavy jobs. They attract a premium for being conversant in some degree of rules and track safety as well as permanent nights.

 

[TheAlbanach_]

£27,000 for cleaners is frankly an abuse of taxpayer money and the quicker it is outsourced and wage costs brought down to a level more consistent with the rate of pay for cleaners more generally. There should be a specific exemption to employment law with regards to forced pay cuts in cases like this where it can be demonstrated that a salary is grossly disproportionate compared to similar jobs in the same area.

How? So you’d rather people paid minimum wage and screwed over by companies by out sourcing rather than paid a good wage for a job that needs to be done? Minimum wage shouldn’t be paid just cause it can.

 

[fishwomp]

Threatening strike action at the current time is frankly immoral.

More foolish than immoral.

With 90% lower usage, who will notice the strike? With EMA contracts, the operator may not care either.. they are hardly going to see a revenue hit. Striking at the wrong time will just cost the crew lost earnings.

 

[Bletchleyite]

How? So you’d rather people paid minimum wage and screwed over by companies by out sourcing rather than paid a good wage for a job that needs to be done? Minimum wage shouldn’t be paid just cause it can.

Wages paid by the railway should be in line with the market more widely.

 

[Yew]

Threatening strike action at the current time is frankly immoral.

Using the pandemic as an excuse to repress the wages of working-class people is immoral.

 

[Daniel740]

For all those saying that these cleaners are paid too much, remember if you pay peanuts, you get monkeys...

 

[LoogaBarooga]

More foolish than immoral.

With 90% lower usage, who will notice the strike? With EMA contracts, the operator may not care either.. they are hardly going to see a revenue hit. Striking at the wrong time will just cost the crew lost earnings.

Totally agree with this.

If the company had managers out delivering a two hourly service it would be more than enough to meet demand.

 

[ainsworth74]

For all those saying that these cleaners are paid too much, remember if you pay peanuts, you get monkeys...

I must admit I find it odd to suggest that they're being paid to much. Kudos to them getting a good a wage.

Now, whether a pay increase is sensible or even viable is, to me, a much bigger question.

 

[Re 4/4]

Do the RMT do anything else apart from striking?

Yes, they support their members legally if they're threatened with dismissal - one of the main reasons for joining a union is as a kind of legal insurance in case your employer is a bit arbitrary in dismissing you for supposed misconduct.

 

[LoogaBarooga]

The more I think about it, the more I think Scotrail are deliberately trying to goad staff into striking judging by the tone and language in that statement.

 

[Bletchleyite]

For all those saying that these cleaners are paid too much, remember if you pay peanuts, you get monkeys...

I don't know about ScotRail, but the standard of cleaning on trains I find to be decidedly, er, mixed.

This may of course be (probably is) due to a poor specification rather than the staff, e.g. some TOCs bother cleaning aircon vents and some don't.